The not so human condition
by unmemorable
Summary: just the usual, Alice and Claire moving on with their lives, with some trouble along the way. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

_Set after _Afterlife_ minus the choppers that had come swooping in to ruin the day (although it does mean another movie, yay! __(except I heard it wasn't coming out till 2012 *sad face*))._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Resident Evil_

_Note: this is sorta just something i wrote for myself for a bit of practice, wasn't even sure if i would upload it . . . but here it is.  
>Sorry for any mistakes.<em>

With over 400 survivors on board the ship it was difficult for some people to handle the intimacy. Alice had learnt to combat this unfortunate situation by becoming almost entirely nocturnal. She didn't need much sleep so she was available for Claire and the others when they were discussing important details about finding a permanent residence but she tried to avoid most interactions with the other people. If the survivors had been asked they would have answered with 'Alice who?' To them she was more of a legend that had taken down Umbrella and paved the way for a new life. She had become the ghost of the ship. Her friends found this amusing but did worry about her and whether she would actually stick around for much longer.

Claire was the only person who got to see her on a regular basis. Alice would drop by their cabin or find her during the night in some deserted hallway. They had been together for four months now and still hadn't told anyone, which was Alice's request; she didn't like her private life exposed. It worried Claire when Chris and K-mart would wonder aloud whether today would be the day she disappeared for good. The only time she felt completely sure of Alice's presence was when she would find her in the night and they would frantically strip off their clothing and collapse together wherever they could. With Alice's hands on her body Claire was able to believe in a world after this diseased life.

'Where are we Chris?' Claire strolled into the control room and stood by her brother. He was checking over all the instruments as he did everyday. It was a habit he had fallen to; to detect any unwelcome change the ship might throw at them.

'We're almost back to Alaska, another week and we should hit the beginning of the south-east coast.' He peered out the forward window, squinting as if he could make out the land mass already, 'Before we get there we're going to have to get a solid plan in place. Do we come ashore as soon as we reach the coast? Do we sail on a bit towards the middle?' he turned to look at his younger sister, 'Might be less chance of infection if we land as far away from the Canadian border as we can.' She was nodding slowly then moved over to the radio and fiddled with the dials; trying to clear any static.

'Have we had any responses?'

'No it's been quiet. To be honest I'd be surprised if we found a legit one for the rest of the trip.' The mood grew sombre and the dying light was sending unwanted shadows into the small room.

'I'll take first watch if you want,' Claire broke the silence, 'Go get something to eat.' Chris reached out and squeezed her shoulder as he passed; giving silent encouragement. Nearly as soon as he'd left, the door opened again and Alice entered silently. She walked to Claire's side and took her hand. It was a rare gesture from the stoic woman and Claire wondered if she'd heard the conversation. They stood silently as the sun returned to the ever ravenous sea.

_In one of the cabins a lone man was pacing and muttering to himself. He repeatedly threw angry glances at the sparse objects in his room; sometimes dragging his hand through knotted hair. His eyes most frequently landed on the knife that was lying on his bed. It had already tasted blood; his wrists dripped freely with the crimson liquid. His muttering intensified and some of the words became audible._

'_Caging us, taking us away . . . experiments, more experiments.' Spit fell from his lips and the anger was replaced with fear, 'Infection . . . going to infect me. But I won't let them, they can't fool me so easy.' His pacing slowed until he stopped completely. He stared at his wrists then calmly walked to the tiny bathroom attached to his room. He cleaned the blood from his arms and tore a shirt to make bandages. Returning to his room he picked up the knife and held the stained blade to his chest. 'I won't let them.'_

Alice was with Claire in their cabin. One of the adults had taken over their shift an hour ago and now Claire was fast asleep. When Alice judged the redhead had fallen into a deeper slumber she carefully removed her arms from around her lover's waist. She managed to get off the bed without stirring the redhead, then she exited the warm room and entered the freezing hallway. She hated leaving Claire in the middle of the night like this but she needed to make her rounds of the ship.

She had perfected her skills in moving silently and unseen and any of those who happened to glimpse her usually passed it off as a trick of a tired mind. Every night she made these secret walks. She didn't always know what she was looking for but it made her feel better that, if anything out of the ordinary was happening, she would be ready. Her natural instinct to distrust everyone forced her to always assume that something was bound to go wrong at some stage. She knew that been cooped up in this tin can without anywhere to go if things got rough would wear on peoples' tempers. There had already been a few minor disputes amongst some of the passengers, but nothing that couldn't easily be handled.

As she came out onto the main deck she paused to breath in the clean, crisp air. The stars were out in force tonight and their light gave the ship an eerie, moonscape look. The ship had been slowed down and the sound of gentle waves breaking across the bow carried through the night. Alice passed a dark alcove and barely glanced at the couple that were making use of the secluded spot. They didn't notice her drift by.

She made her way to one of her favourite spots at this time of night; the bow. The railing had rusted a little so she was careful not to lean too hard on the thinning metal. Even during the day this place was almost always vacant. Nothing blocked the cold northern wind that pierced even the thickest of coats. She could handle the cold if it meant that she wasn't disturbed here. This was a place where she was able to think clearly. She often came here when the people aggravated her more than usual. She had thought about leaving many times; perhaps just commandeering one of the choppers that were still stored in the levels in the middle of the ship. But she couldn't leave Claire and she'd overheard Chris say they were nearly to Alaska anyway so she would grit her teeth and stick it out.

She stood there for a few more moments; breathing in the cleansing air. Then she turned on her heel and continued her rounds.

**So, there you have it. If you want more let me know, i do have some chapters in reserve, but it all depends on you guys :)  
>Catch ya later<strong>

**-B**


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I don't own Resident Evil_

_And so it continues . . ._

Claire woke to darkness and an empty space beside her. She thought she'd only been asleep for a few hours but couldn't be sure. She splayed her arm across the other side of the bed and noticed the coldness that had seeped in there. Alice must have been gone for awhile. She turned over to fall asleep again but now that she was awake all the worries came back.

She was responsible for these people and the duty was heavy on her shoulders. She got out of bed and pulled on her clothes. She planned on maybe heading to the control room and relieving whoever was on shift. She hoped she'd run into Alice on the way.

As she walked the hallways she noticed the familiar sensation of been watched. She had become so used to it that it barely registered anymore. Whenever she had that feeling she knew Alice was close by. The thought was always comforting and it helped to relieve some of the fear that Claire could never quite shake. When she reached the control room she heard voices inside. She walked in to find Chris and K-mart sitting at the small table that still took up half the space. They were laughing at some joke Chris had made and Claire hoped that K-mart kept herself more guarded this time round. She had attached herself to Carlos whilst in the convoy and had been all the more devastated for it when he'd sacrificed himself for them.

'What are you doing up? You've already done a shift.' Chris asked when he noticed her.

'Couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd be useful.' She dropped into a chair beside K-mart, 'Now that I'm here though we may as well talk about our plans for the future.' She rubbed her face, trying to push tiredness away.

'What about Alice and Luther?' K-mart asked.

'Well we can just go over basics.'

They didn't get far into talking strategy though as the conversation drifted towards what they hoped they'd find and fantasises they entertained whilst thinking of a permanent home. Nothing practical was set and once the shift was over Claire was definitely tired enough to fall asleep no matter what.

Claire woke again but this time to bright sunlight coming through the porthole and into her room and warm arms wrapped around her. She smiled and turned in the embrace to see soft grey eyes watching her.

'When did you get in?' she closed her eyes again and buried her face into a hard but warm shoulder.

'Not long ago. Your late night excursions must have tired you out because you didn't notice at all.' The voice was low and rough, which made Claire wonder what Alice had been thinking about whilst watching her sleep. She began to get an idea as calloused hands slid under her shirt and glided their way up her side. She shivered at the contact and pulled herself closer to the brunette beside her. Alice rolled over a bit so she was half lying on the redhead and began kissing her way up Claire's neck till she reached her lips. She traced the redhead's bottom lip with her tongue until her mouth eagerly opened. Claire felt the anticipation curl in her stomach and her body begin to tingle. She pulled Alice's hips closer to her own then ran her hands up her back. She was just about to pull the brunette's shirt off when there was a knock at the door.

'Claire, we're gathering in the control room in five minutes.' Chris called from the other side of the door. Alice pulled back and looked at her in exasperation.

'Okay, I'll be right there.' She waited till he left then asked Alice, 'Are you going to join us?' She pulled her closer and kissed her trying to persuade her physically to stay with her. When they broke apart Alice was smiling and Claire wondered if she knew what she'd been trying to do.

'Yes, I want to be there for this one. This close to the coast we'll finally have something interesting to talk about.' She got up and pulled her boots on. Before she walked to the door she paused to look down at her lover splayed on the bed. It was nearly impossible for her to turn away from the sight but she knew that if she stayed she wouldn't allow either of them to leave.

Claire was the last one to arrive. The inner circle still only consisted of Chris, Luther, K-mart, herself and Alice. It had been the group's unanimous decision to keep it this way; they all suffered from trust issues; besides most of the survivors were content to let themselves be led to safety.

Everyone, except Alice, was seated around the small table. The woman in question was, instead, leaning against the console, removed from the group slightly as she always seemed to be.

Claire moved to the head of the table and began, in her usual no nonsense speech.

'Okay, so we know what we want to achieve here. The questions on the table are; do we want to set ashore early and trek it further inland until we find a suitable village? Do we even want to go inland? Or do we travel as far as possible by sea and hope we don't run into any problems like sand bars as we get closer to the islands?' Chris was the first to answer predictably.

'The settling closer to the sea option seems to be safer in my opinion but it might be more convenient if we find somewhere more inland so that we can explore the land further.' He leaned forward, 'And as for how far we travel by sea, I think at least 500 miles from the Canadian border should be enough to escape any fringes of infection.' They all nodded in agreement.

'What about what happens when we find a place?' K-mart asked, 'We're going to need to find food and clean water. The supplies on the ship aren't going to last forever.' No one had a definite answer, so after a few vague suggestions Claire eventually said they'd have to figure it out when they got there. At that moment Alice spoke up for the first time.

'What happens when we find other people? If Alaska has escaped infection, wouldn't that mean there will still be people living in the towns, out in the countryside; anywhere.' Everyone turned to her.

'Well can't we just join with them?' K-mart asked, 'I mean, we're all survivors. They'd be happy to have more people.' She concluded, but the adults didn't look as happy with her theory as she felt they should.

'K-mart, when people have survived this long it usually means they've stocked up on supplies and formed their own little community. Those kinds of people wouldn't like a bunch of strangers wandering in and using up their food and equipment.' Luther explained.

'Where will we find a deserted town then?' she demanded.

'Oh, don't worry, there will be ghost towns enough for us. Not everyone is rational enough to realise the safety to be found in numbers.' Alice replied grimly. The mood in the room darkened at her words. Claire moved from the head of the table to go lean beside her on the counter. She kept an inch of distance between them but was still hyper aware of Alice's warmth, so close.

'So we head over 500 passed the border, find an empty town on the coast and work out supplies as soon as possible.' She summed up. They all nodded agreement and didn't mention the basic nature of their plan and its reliance on pure luck. Sometimes it was easier to think optimistically.

**Thanks to those who reviewed, and I don't use beta so flames are welcome, so long as it's constructive and not mindless critisism :)**

**-B**


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: I don't own Resident Evil_

_Yeah, no idea if anyone is still reading so . . . i'll upload this one and if even one person is still reading i'll continue :)_

When the meeting broke up, K-mart wandered off towards the deck, wondering if her friend would be there today. She had met the man the other day. He'd been standing at the railing all alone and she had introduced herself to him; she hated to see someone look so lonely when there were so many other people to talk to now. He'd been reserved at first but there were very few people who could resist K-mart's natural friendliness for long. Admittedly he was a bit weird but she didn't try to hold that against him.

She saw him there and decided to give him some company.

'Hey.' He jumped a little but smiled when he saw her.

'Hello again. I must admit I was wondering if you would be joining me today.' He didn't look at her as he spoke; he rarely made eye contact.

'Yeah, I thought I'd come out for some fresh air; the control room gets a bit stuffy with more than two people in it.' she explained.

'Did you just have another meeting?' He was looking sidelong at her but she didn't notice.

'Yeah, we're getting close to landing so we needed to work out some stuff, but it's all pretty vague.' She waved a hand in the air to emphasise her point.

'Do you guys have a set time on when you hold these meetings?' his voice was nonchalant as if just making polite conversation.

'Not really, they're pretty impromptu. Whenever we have a bit of spare time we round everyone up and have a chat.' she breathed in deeply, 'I think I'm going to miss it out here. It's so pretty and calming.' He didn't try to press her on the previous subject. They chatted a bit more, but than she had to leave to do her chores or some of the reading Claire had set for her. She was wondering if she'd be able to get Alice to join her (she always made things more interesting) so she missed the intense stare the man gave her as she turned away.

Alice had a bad feeling. She had been in the room she shared with Claire, catching up on a little sleep when something had woken her. It didn't seem to be anything tangible just the thought that she should be outside, ready for something. What that something was, she didn't know. She slipped quietly out the door and made her way down the hall, trying to follow her instincts. She found her path eventually leading her towards the deck, but before she made it outside K-mart caught her.

'Alice! I've been looking everywhere for you. Will you come sit with me while I read? Claire makes me do it, she says I need to get an education, but I'm like "Claire the world has ended and I doubt it will pull itself together in my lifetime, what do I need to know about history for?" she just says stuff about past mistakes or something. So in conclusion, I must read.' Alice smiled at her; she was amazed at K-mart's apparent ability to not need a single breath whilst talking.

'Sure, can you give me a sec though?' she didn't wait for a reply just hurried out to the deck. She scanned the area but whatever had been giving her the strange feeling was gone now.

She found K-mart again and they both went to her room to 'study'. When Alice walked in she came to a complete stop.

'Whoa.' K-mart looked back at her sheepishly.

The room was covered in pink. It seemed K-mart had scoured the ship for every scrap of material that even vaguely resembled the colour and stuck it in her room.

'I kinda missed out on the whole young girly teenager stage you know, so I'm making up for it. Don't worry I'll probably change it in another day or so.' She picked a book up from a pile beside her bed and shook it in Alice's direction, 'Do you see how thick this is?' she seemed to expect a response so Alice nodded, 'Claire expects me to read it before we land.' She sat on her bed with a frown and glared at the book in her hands, 'You may not have noticed but I'm not a big reader.' Alice smiled, which was her equivalent of a laugh.

'It's not so bad, with a book you can escape into another world, you aren't tied down to this disease ridden husk.' Her words ended bitterly as they so often did these days, but K-mart took no notice.

'It doesn't help when the world you're supposed to be escaping to is about as exciting as watching metal rust.' They argued good naturedly for several minutes until Alice realised what K-mart was doing and promptly ordered her to begin reading.

Claire had been keeping Chris company on watch. They both cherished these moments together as it gave them the chance to become reacquainted and revel in the feeling of having someone they loved survive. She eventually left to grab some lunch but detoured to her room to pick up some charts she had been studying a couple of nights before.

Claire opened the door to her room quietly. She had gotten into that habit after barging in and waking Alice up multiple times when she found her sleeping in there at random hours of the day. Today it wasn't Alice inside but a stranger. He was just standing with his back turned and obviously hadn't heard her come in.

"Can I help you?' He jumped violently and almost fell over the bed. He straightened quickly and pushed his hand through his hair.

'Sorry, I uh didn't see you come in there. Um I was just looking for you to, uh, well that is I was hoping you could tell me when we might be landing, if you have an idea. I'm sorry about this I couldn't find you and I came here and well, yeah . . . sorry.' He was sweating heavily and his eyes looked everywhere except at her face.

'We expect to reach our destination in a week or so.' She answered bluntly.

'Ah, excellent, yes that is good news.' he began edging towards her trying to reach the door, 'Well, again, I'm awfully sorry about this, I'll just be on my way I guess.' She just looked at him coldly and didn't answer. The silence seemed to make his babbling worse until he was almost incoherent. He managed to squeeze passed her and was heading down the hallway when she called out to him.

'Hey, I didn't catch your name there.' He half turned but kept walking.

'It's, uh, Peter.' Then he almost jogged away. Claire watched until he disappeared around a corner then surveyed the room, trying to see if anything looked out of place or was missing.

She walked back to the control room and found Chris in there checking the controls again.

'Where's the log for all the passengers onboard?' she asked. He pointed wordlessly to the shelf above the radar and she saw it sitting there. She turned it on and typed in 'Peter'.

**Please let me know if you're still reading, feel like i'm writing for ghosts here. And that image creeped me out a little. Just got a mental picture of a bunch of ghosts all reading over my shoulder as i write, anyway, i shall quit my rambling and say goodbye . . . Bye.**

**-B**


	4. Chapter 4

_To all those who have made me feel like pushing on with this story, thank you. As a reward I'm updating a tad earlier than i planned :) You guys are now my real life, living ghosts. I am writing for you (as sappy as that sounds)._

_So, please enjoy._

* * *

><p><em>She was suspicious, he had dropped his guard and she had caught him. Now he would have to be extra careful. He didn't want her recognising him in the corridors or in the cafeteria. <em>

_He was pacing again, the knife held firmly in one hand. Plan A had fallen through, their meetings were unscheduled; unpredictable. He would have to take them out one by one, but he was starting with the redhead. She was the leader; without the head the body would fall. They wouldn't take him. He was smarter than they thought; he had been smart enough to give a fake name. They wouldn't catch him. He wouldn't let them. They weren't going to infect him. He would destroy them all._

_The hate grew until he couldn't bear it. At the height of emotion he put the knife to his skin and dragged it roughly. The pain seared through him and released the pent up feelings._

_He sighed. Better._

Claire had been looking everywhere for Alice. She'd combed the ship from top to bottom; looking in all her favourite hideaways, even the one at the bow which she knew Alice thought she didn't know about. It wasn't until much later that she realised there was another person who might know where Alice was. She headed towards K-mart's cabin, knocking quietly before entering. She opened the door to find both Alice and K-mart curled up on the bed fast asleep. A book lay beside them, open at the fifth page. Claire smiled down at them, she hated to wake Alice up at this moment but she needed to talk to her urgently. Before she could reach out though Alice's eyes opened and she turned slowly to face her. She smiled sleepily at Claire.

'Hey.' Claire spoke softly so as not to wake the blonde teenager.

'What's the matter?' Alice whispered. But Claire didn't answer, instead she moved closer and, checking that K-mart was still asleep, kissed the brunette firmly on the lips. She lingered, unwilling to break the contact, but Alice pulled away first, 'Probably not a good idea at the moment, it's been hours since we've been together and I wouldn't want K-mart to witness me jumping you in the middle of her room.' Alice whispered softly with a grin.

'I need to speak with you.' Alice got up carefully and followed Claire out of the room. Neither of them noticed K-mart's smile.

Once they were alone in their room Claire told her the story of the stranger.

'There are 17 Peter's currently out of chryo but none of them are a match for the one I saw.' She finished. She was wondering if telling Alice had been the best move. She hadn't said a word throughout Claire's story and the look on her face was something more than dangerous, 'Well, what do you think?'

'I think, you shouldn't worry about this. I'll handle it.' She was already moving toward the door, but Claire jumped up and grabbed her arm. She thought Alice was about to shake her off but she stopped and turned to her eventually.

'You can't just go out and leave me here like some pathetic damsel in distress. And besides I don't think it will go down well when you tear some man apart in the middle of the crowd.' Alice didn't laugh. 'I'm serious Alice, you need to think about this. You don't even know what he looks like.'

'I don't need to know what he looks like, I'll find him.' she tried leaving again but Claire tightened her grip.

'Just wait for a second okay, we need to tell the rest of them first. He might not have been just looking for me you know, you live here too.'

'Over three quarters of the people on this boat have forgotten I exist remember. I'm not like the rest of you, I can move around without everyone knowing who I am. He won't know I'm coming.' But she didn't move away this time.

'Let's just get everyone to the control room and talk about this okay?' she waited till Alice nodded, 'You go get K-mart and I'll find Luther, Chris is probably still up there.' She started walking but this time it was her arm being gripped.

'I'm not leaving you alone.' she was leaning towards Claire protectively.

'I can take care of myself and you know that, now hurry up.' With that she pulled away and jogged down the hallway. Alice sprinted in the other direction.

When they were all gathered in the control room Claire took up the role of leader again. She paced as she talked, the movement helped her think. Chris' reaction was similar to Alice's; he jumped to his feet before she had even completed the recount and seemed about ready to interrogate the whole ship. Luther continued to listen quietly and K-mart just looked scared. Alice had pulled the mask over her face and even Claire couldn't tell what she was thinking.

'There doesn't seem to be much we can do, he'd be lying low now that I know what he looks like. But even with all this we don't know if he's dangerous. I could have just blown this completely out of proportion.' She sat down and rubbed her face with both hands. They shouldn't be having this problem there were so many other things to worry about.

'I don't think this is a mistake.' Everyone turned, Alice didn't speak often and when she did they listened, 'Something hasn't felt right for a while now, I've been getting it off and on for a few days but lately it's been getting stronger.' She was frowning heavily, staring at the floor, 'I don't like it.' she added quietly.

'What can we do though,' K-mart asked, 'I mean there are hundreds of people on board, how do we find just one anonymous man?' She stood up and began pacing, in mimicry of Claire, 'Well, I supposed we could ask everyone where they'd been . . . no that's not practical. What if we find every male with Claire's description and interrogate them. . .' Luther stepped into her path.

'You're making me feel seasick.' He put his hands onto her shoulders and guided her to a seat, 'The only way we can get him is when he makes his next move, and he will make another move.' He put his hands firmly on the table and leaned forward, 'And we'll be ready.'

Claire and Alice had returned to their cabin. Usually Claire would be out and about, talking with the crew, checking charts, whatever needed doing, and she usually left Alice to her own devices. But today they'd both wandered back to the privacy of their room. Alice had lingered at the door while Claire stood in the middle of the room and, once again, wondered what "Peter" had been looking for. She was frowning heavily when she felt Alice move in behind her. She felt her hands move to her hips and her breathe on the back of her neck. The frown melted away and was replaced by a small smirk as lips pressed behind her ear. Alice subtly pushed her forward until they were closer to the bed, then turned her and followed as she collapsed onto the mattress.

'Are you scared?' Claire asked. Alice was running her hands over the skin Claire's stomach, kissing any spot that was ticklish.

'Mmmm?' Her mouth was too busy to articulate.

'Are you scared of what might happen with this man?' Claire breathed in deeply to stop a moan escaping her lips when Alice's hand moved further upward.

'I'm scared of what might happen to you, but other than that, no.' she began trailing her lips up Claire's neck, nipping the skin softly as she went. Claire had to control her breathing before she could reply in a steady voice.

'I told you, I can take care of myself.' one of her hands fisted in the brunette's hair as she pulled her closer to her skin, Alice's reaction was to slide her hand slowly up Claire's thigh, '_Oh god_.'

'That doesn't mean I like it when some idiot is gunning for you.' She pressed her lips just behind Claire's ear before she bit down gently on her lobe.

'He could be after you too.' Claire's breathing hitched at the end but she was feeling too damn good to care.

'But I can take care of myself.' Alice chuckled at the outraged expression on the redhead's face then silenced any protest with her lips. Claire immediately forgot what ever argument she had been about to make and wrapped her legs around the brunette's waist. The last coherent words she managed were.

'Don't think I don't realise why you haven't left my side.' Then she succumbed to the fire that was burning itself across her skin.

**Sorry if there are any mistakes in the story so far, or constancy issues, i've kinda just churned the chapters out and not paid a heap of attention to the details.  
>Anyway, let me know what you think andor if i could do better.**

**-B**


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: I don't own RE_

_Sorry if the updates slow, life had poblems then computer shit itself, but now fickle computer is back and I'm eating biscuits with melted chocolate._

_WARNING: this chapter may contain dodgeyness. Sorry for any mistakes or confusion._

_So, without further ado, I give you Chapter 5._

K-mart was outside with her friend. She had been standing with him for fifteen minutes and still hadn't spoken. He wasn't very good at talking with people but he finally screwed up the courage to break the silence.

'Are you alright?' Even breaking the tension that little bit had him sweating. She released her breath heavily then turned to him.

'No, everything is definitely not alright.' She lapsed into her tense silence again.

'Care to elaborate?' he asked softly. She looked at him, considering whether she could trust him with such sensitive knowledge.

'No.' she finally decided. They both watched the moon gleaming above them. _He had an idea of what might be bothering her._

Claire had eventually dragged herself away from the arms of her lover.

'What will you do while I'm gone?' she had asked. Alice had that smirk that told her a straight answer was definitely not coming.

'I'll find some way to amuse myself.'

Now Claire was going to relieve who ever was on watch and instead of concentrating on her surroundings she was going to be wondering what the hell Alice was up to.

Alice was currently prowling the corridors. She had that feeling again, and this time she was not going to let anything distract her until she had found the cause. She was in the lowest levels that contained public cabins. There weren't many occupied in this area as there was plenty of space in the upper floors and people had started bunking together; forming their own instant families.

She stalked slowly, scarcely breathing as she listened for any signs of life. A whisper of something up ahead had her scanning behind her to make sure no one had used the sound to distract her. Then she moved forward soundlessly until she reached a closed door. She carefully leaned forward and heard the sound of muted muttering emanating from the other side. She couldn't catch the words but they seemed to be moving from one side of the room to the other, as if whoever was speaking was pacing at the same time.

She was preparing to open the door when there came the sound of someone screaming. The noise was far into the distance and had she not been straining so hard to hear the person inside the room she may have missed it. She marked the door in her memory than sprinted for the deck.

When she burst out into the open she noticed immediately the small group that was already forming on deck. Most of them were leaning over the rail and calling out to the water. Someone had already thrown a life preserver overboard but whoever had fallen in couldn't reach it. The moon was the only light so far but Alice noted people sprinting for torches. She yelled at people to back up from the railing and dragged those who were too slow to respond. A woman was crying hysterically and trying to climb over the side. Alice pulled her back and thrust her into the arms of a man behind her. She stared out into the dark waves until her sharp eyes picked out a head bobbing further away from the ship. Without hesitation she jumped lightly up onto the rail then dived.

Claire and Chris had been in the control room. She had come to relieve him but he had stuck around to talk. They were both laughing as they reminisced about their childhood when they heard the screams. Claire grabbed a pair of binoculars and could just distinguish the shape of someone leaning over the railing yelling frantically out to the sea.

'Stop the ship! Someone's gone overboard.' Chris leaped for the controls as Claire grabbed the emergency torch from its rack and raced down the stairs, heading for the deck. When she reached the fringes of the group she grabbed one of the bystanders and asked urgently.

'What happened?' the man turned to her, his face was pale even in the moonlight.

'Some kid was playing out here she must have just fallen over, I don't know.' She moved forward, pushing through the crowd until she was closer to the edge.

'Everyone, get back!' she yelled, 'Someone tell me what's going on.' They must have recognised her because they did take a step back. A man, holding a woman who seemed to have collapsed, answered her.

'Kaity went overboard. She was supposed to be in bed.' he seemed to be on the verge of tears, 'Someone dived in after her but I didn't see who.' He tightened his grip on the woman, burying his face in her hair. Someone else took up the story.

'It was a woman, but I don't know who, she didn't look familiar.' The words made Claire's heart constrict and the next ones almost caused it to come out of her throat.

'It was that woman, the one who was with you guys at the beginning, but I'd thought she left ages ago or something.' Claire leaned dangerously close over the edge; she added her torch light to the others.

'Alice!' she couldn't pick anything out of the darkness, 'Where's the life boats?' even as she spoke she heard the sound of an engine. The boat came whining out of the darkness but slowed quickly; she could just make out Luther's form at the wheel. The boat circled three times, ranging out and back then coming in closer. On the fourth sweep they stopped. In the glow of the torches Claire could just see two limp bodies been dragged into the boat.

'Everyone except the girl's parents clear the deck. If you want the news I'll send someone down to the cafeteria in about half an hour.' She called to the people around her. They eventually dispersed, leaving the tearful man and the woman in his arms behind.

'We're not really her parents but she's like a daughter to us anyway.' he said.

'You'll do. Come on, they'll take them to the first aid.' She turned and walked off at a brisk pace. When they reached the well stocked medical room the parents pushed passed her and hurried to the bed where the little girl had been placed. She looked cold and her eyes weren't open, but she was alive.

Luther, Chris and K-mart were also there as were a few of the men who had helped Luther in the rescue, but Claire was only looking at the sodden figure that remained a few paces back. She ran to her and threw her arms around her. The rest of them turned their backs respectfully on the little reunion to give them what privacy they could. The pair may have not told anyone about their relationship but it had been assumed.

Neither of them spoke; they weren't ones for showing a great deal of emotion in front of other people. Claire could feel the shivers racking the body in her arms.

'Are we good here?' she broke the contact, turned and asked her brother. He nodded but spoke to Alice before they left.

'That was brave Alice, stupid but brave. You saved her life and we all know how important one life is these days.' The rest of the group were nodding their heads in agreement. K-mart even went so far as to hug the woman.

'That's alright.' She answered the men gruffly and hugged K-mart back.

'K, can you go down and tell anyone in the cafeteria that the girl's okay?' Claire asked. The teen nodded and hurried off, 'Alice, you come with me.' They left the parents with their surrogate daughter. They knew she'd be in good hands with the resident doctor.

In their cabin Claire helped the brunette strip her clothes off. She found a spare set and handed them to her. They completed this in total silence. Claire wouldn't look Alice in the eye and Alice knew she only did that when she was secretly angry at her. She loved Claire, more than life itself, but right now she was too damn cold to care. The water she'd just hurled herself into had come straight from the Arctic, apparently with some complementary ice cubes to boot. Her fingers felt like they didn't belong to her; she could barely feel the material she was struggling to pull over her head. So if Claire wanted to berate her for doing something reckless and potentially fatal then she would take it in silence and wait for the storm to pass.

But Claire surprised her for once. Instead of shouting and pacing she merely wrapped her arms around her again and whispered.

'I thought I'd lost you.' It was Alice who was in danger of crying. She pulled the redhead closer and blamed the cold for the intensity of her shivering; she didn't feel fear. She didn't know how long they stood there but Claire eventually pulled away.

'I need to sort this out; I want you to stay here. I mean it Alice.' She continued when she saw the protest coming, 'You stay here and get warm. If you're not here when I get back, there will be hell to pay, you hear me? I need to know where you are.' She couldn't help her voice wavering a little at the end but she kept her gaze steady. Alice's eyes softened and she quickly kissed the redhead on the lips before sitting on the bed.

'You won't even have to chain me here.' Claire smiled and felt the stress lighten. She moved to straddle the brunette and gave her a much more heated kiss, 'Although if you don't stop that I may end up chaining _you_ to the bed.' Claire smiled against her lips.

'I've never been a sex slave before.' Alice kept her hands carefully in one place.

'You've got to try everything at least once,' she was finding it very difficult not let her hands wander, 'sometimes, in special cases, twice.' She tightened her grip on Claire's waist then lifted her off her lap, 'Now go before I do something stupid.' Claire laughed and walked to the door. She turned before she left and pointed her finger at Alice.

'Stay.' Alice smirked in return.

'Woof.'

**Will try to update faster but can't make promises, I usually do this when I'm procrastinating but now I seem even too busy for that *insert world weary sigh here* Anyway, remember my friends, to be blunt means you have no time for stupidity, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. :)  
><strong>

**-B**


	6. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: I don't own RE_

_Sorry if the update's late, shit's been hectic. Anyways, here 'tis :)_

Claire had never been one to condemn someone for doing something stupid. It would make her a hypocrite, because lord knew how many times she'd done something reckless, but Alice was trying even her deep reserves of patience. She swore silently to herself that if Alice ever did anything even remotely life-threatening again she was going to lock her in a padded room and wear the only key around her neck.

She walked straight into the first aid room and to the bed the girl was still lying in; her eyes were open this time. Her parents remained by her side the mother clutching her hand.

'Hey there.' Claire spoke softly; there was something about the room that encouraged one to speak in a whisper, 'How you doing kid?' the girl seemed too shy to speak though so Claire turned to the parents.

'The doctor said she's going to be just fine. Apart from a bit of shock and slight hypothermia she's doing great.' The man answered, he then lifted his hand to Claire, 'Ethan Walker by the way and this is Carly,' he motioned to the woman, 'and Kaity of course.' Claire shook his hand and nodded.

'That's great to hear about her recovery.' She mentioned politely. She paused a few seconds but before the silence became awkward she made her excuse, 'Well, I'd best get back to the watch. I'll leave you guys to it.' she had reached the door when someone touched her arm. She turned to find the woman, Carly, behind her.

'Could you thank the woman, Alice I think it was, for us? She has no idea how grateful we are to her. Without her, Kaity could have . . .' she lost control for a moment and the tears welled in her eyes, 'just, thanks.' Then she turned and hurried back to her daughter. Claire stared after her for a moment then she turned and walked away.

_He'd heard about the little girl going overboard. The whole ship, it seemed, was in an uproar. No one noticed as he watched from the back of the crowd, they were all talking animatedly. No one gave him a second glance. He smiled. Now was the time to put his plan into action. In the confusion, no one would notice if she didn't turn up for a while, and he could have hidden himself long before anyone noticed her absence. He turned around and headed for the exit. He had left his knife in his cabin. But he would use it tonight. Tonight he would begin the eradication of all those Umbrella operatives; the ones masquerading as their leaders. _

She had planned on returning to her cabin, and the woman who was hopefully still in there, but she decided a detour on the way couldn't hurt; she wanted to catch up with K-mart and get her thoughts on the morale of the crew. K-mart had an almost unnatural ability in understanding people and their reactions; it was one of the reasons Claire kept her around. She found her still in the cafeteria. The centre of a small knot of people. Claire squeezed her way through and managed to drag her out of the group.

'Hey Claire,' K-mart laughed, 'You wanna join in? I feel a celebration brewing.' She looked back at the group. They were all smiling and laughing.

'What are they celebrating?'

'Well, the rescue of course; that little ray of hope has set off a whole tidal wave of excitement. I think they've found a bit of optimism, and with land only a few days away they're having a little fun.' K-mart spread her arms wide, 'We've got to think positive Claire; all work and no play makes the world's only known survivor's, dull survivors.' With a parting laugh she ran off to join the revellers again. Claire watched them for a moment and decided that, tonight at least, there would be no more depressing thoughts from the passengers.

As she was walking through the corridors she felt the prickle of someone watching her. She shrugged her shoulders unconsciously. It wasn't the familiar gaze of Alice watching out for her; whoever was following her was hostile. Her hand brushed at her hip but when she didn't feel her guns there she mentally cursed herself. Too many months of relative safety had made her complicit. She could see them, in her minds eye, hanging in their holster beside her bed; the same bed that Alice was probably still sitting on.

'_Damn_' she lowered her head and tried to peek behind herself but she couldn't see anything. She looked forward and saw a corner up ahead. She could round it then wait. If anyone came around after her she would act first and ask questions later. Taking deep breathes she turned the corner as calmly as possible then silently came to a stop. She pressed up against the wall, her body relaxed. Now she would wait.

It didn't take long before Alice became restless. In her defence she had waited at least five minutes after Claire left to seriously consider leaving. She knew what she needed to do. There was an unknown threat waiting for her in the last habitable level of the ship and she planned on dealing with it tonight. The moment she made up her mind she got up from the bed and left; without hesitation.

She ghosted through the hallways, taking an indirect route so that she would be able to see if anything was out of the ordinary as she went. Her route took her close to the first aid room. As she passed the door she heard footsteps approaching from the other side. She quickened her pace so she would round the next corner before the door opened. Before the wall blocked her view she saw Claire step out then turn as someone stopped her. Alice waited to hear what was said. When the words of the other woman drifted down to her, she smiled. She didn't show it often but she loved the feeling helping others gave her.

She waited until she was sure Claire was heading in the opposite direction before she continued on her way. When she reached the last level she began counting the doors until she was only metres from the one which held the threat behind it.

It was at that moment that she heard the lever turning; whoever lived there seemed to be going for a walk. She quickly opened the door she was standing beside and ducked in, closing it silently behind her. She listened at the cold metal until she heard footsteps pass her. After counting to twenty she left the dusty room and followed in the person's wake. She caught up to him but held back at a safe distance.

There was something about the man that had Alice frowning. It wasn't until they reached a t-intersection in the hallways that it clicked. Down one way she could distinctly hear voices laughing and talking loudly. The man stopped when he heard them and leaned as casually as possible against one wall until the sounds faded. He was acting exactly like she did when she was prowling the corridors at night. She wished his motives may be so innocent but she highly doubted it.

She waited till he rounded a corner before coming out of her own. His path seemed to have some sort of pattern to it. He stopped at the busiest areas, like the cafeteria, first; standing at the back and scanning the crowd unobtrusively. Before making his way around the ship eventually closing in on the corridor that Alice knew best; she walked down it every time she went to her cabin. His actions changed, it was almost as though he was following someone himself. He stopped looking behind himself every now and then, and instead ducked into shadowed corners and pressed himself into door frames; just as Alice had been doing moments ago as she followed him. As they came closer to her cabin she became more certain on who he was stalking. The knowledge made her blood boil and the adrenaline began pumping itself quickly into her system. It came so quickly her head swam and with the strength it gave to her she knew that when she caught him she'd find it very difficult not to kill him.

With one corner to go she made her move. She broke cover and sprinted at him. He turned as she was almost on him and she had to quickly leap out of the way of the blade that he now held in his hand. She had been too close though and she felt the sting as the tip of the knife gouged a deep cut across her forearm. She barely felt the pain though; the adrenaline was taking care of that. He swung at her wildly but she was ready now and dodged easily. He slashed again but he was scared and not thinking straight, whereas she had been in this situation many times before. She grinned when she realised that she was going to be able to kill the fuckhead who thought he could kill Claire.

To the man, that smile had him shaking harder than ever before in his life. He readjusted his grip on the knife and went for a final desperate stab. She sidestepped the ploy then quickly moved forward, slamming him into the wall. He tried to cut her again but she had a hold of his arm now. She used the leverage to throw him to the floor than she brought her foot down on his wrist, using as much force as she could. She felt the satisfactory sound of bones breaking and the knife fell from his grasp. He curled up into a ball at her feet, clutching his arm. She bent slowly and picked up the knife. She held the blade up and watched the play of light across the surface. The edge hadn't been sharpened in a while but it was still effective; the cut on her arm was testament. She looked from the blade to the man at her feet and back again. She knelt down and pushed him so he was flat on his back then she held the point to his chest.

Claire had been ready for whoever was following her but she wasn't ready for the sound of the fight that broke out from around the corner. She cautiously peeked around the wall, and what she saw made her gasp.

There was Alice in all her glory. Watching her, Claire could understand exactly how she had survived all those years on her own. She practically danced around the man as he struck out wildly at her and when she had an opening she attacked with vicious ferocity. It wasn't until Claire saw the expression on the brunette's face as she looked from the knife to the man, that she realised how much of a killing machine Alice was. The complete absence of expression as she knelt was so unnerving that Claire didn't realise what she was about to do until it was almost too late.

'Alice!' She leaped forward and tackled her. They rolled and ended with Alice pinning Claire down with that blank expression still on her face, 'Alice it's me, it's Claire.' She held her hands up and her eyes flicked to the blade that Alice still gripped. Alice's own gaze followed and when she saw the knife poised the mask finally cracked. She dropped the weapon and pushed herself away from Claire, scrambling back until she hit the wall.

'Oh god, Claire what are you doing. I almost . . . oh shit.' She lowered her head into shaky hands. Claire pulled herself over and touched her arm softly, then gripped it when Alice tried to pull away.

'Alice, get over it.' Claire met her shocked expression calmly, 'When you first came to Alaska I almost killed you remember? Now we're even.'

'You didn't know who I was.' she replied incredulously.

'Did you know it was me just before?' Claire asked reasonably.

'That's different; I should have known it was you.' Alice argued back

'That's bullshit and you know it. We're even and that's final. Now are we going to stop that man from getting away or are we going to argue over trivial facts about whom almost killed whom.' They both looked to the man who had managed to drag himself a few metres away.

Alice silently stood and walked to the stalker, 'We'd best get you out of here buddy.' She grabbed him roughly and hauled him to his feet. The movement jolted his arm and he screamed loudly. Claire grabbed an arm and together they half carried, half dragged him to the control room. They didn't meet anyone in the corridors. It was late and even those who had stayed up to celebrate Kaity's rescue had probably gone to bed. Alice could barely believe that it was the same night. So much had happened that her impromptu dip in the ocean seemed to have happened days ago.

**Hope you like it. Sorry if there are grammatical errors, or errors of any description. I'm a bit of a hypocrite in that sense. If I find bad grammar in another story I'm just like "BURN THEM!" But when it comes to mine own stories, it's more like "meh" . . . so yeah, sorry.**

**-B**


	7. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer: I don't own RE_

_So, yeah imma just gonna keep on updating :)_

_To everyone who's reviewed so far, I love you guys :) And, as always, sorry for mistakes and continuity problems._

When they reached the control room the only person there was someone that Alice didn't know. He jumped up when they entered.

'Jeez Claire, what happened?' he didn't seem to know what to do; just stood there and watched as they dumped the man on the floor.

'Just had an accident Charlie, why don't you go find Chris for us? He should be in his cabin.' She strode to one of the draws below the controls and began searching in them.

'Shouldn't he go to the medical room?' Charlie was still staring at the barely conscious man.

'Charlie, we got this. Can you get Luther as well? His cabin is right next to Chris'.' She found what she was looking for and straightened up with a roll of duct tape in her hands, 'Now Charlie.' He started at her tone but left hurriedly.

Claire duct taped the man's ankles quickly and deftly, cutting the tape with her teeth. She looked at his swollen arm then put the tape down, 'With his arm like that he won't be doing much damage.' She said to no one in particular. She stepped back and stood next to Alice, 'I wonder why he wanted to kill me?' she mused. She regretted her words when she felt Alice stiffen beside her. Claire grabbed her hand and stroked the soft skin with her thumb, 'It's alright Alice, we're alive, he's going to be kicked off the boat and we'll live happily ever after.' When she didn't reply Claire looked up and saw her staring at the man. Claire stretched up and kissed her on the cheek, 'Maybe you shouldn't be here. You look like you're going to kill him and I know he probably deserves it, but it wouldn't be right. There are only so many people left in the world. I don't think I could stand by and watch one of them be killed.' Alice looked at her. The expression on her face was completely calm.

'I'm fine Claire. As long as we never have to see him again I'll be fine.' She smiled a little to convince her. Claire knew it was genuine and hugged her fiercely to show her appreciation.

'Thank you by the way, for saving my life there.' She felt the vibrations in Alice's chest when she chuckled.

'You could have taken him.' Claire smiled in return.

'True, but still.' She let her arms drop away when she heard footsteps outside the room, but Alice still brushed her hand softly with her own.

Chris and Luther burst into the room then stopped when they saw the man on the floor.

'Well, what do we do with him?' Chris rubbed the back of his head in contemplation. His calmness almost had Claire in hysterics and she wondered if she actually was in a bit of shock. Luther walked over and knelt by the man.

His presence seemed to be noticed because the man began yelling, 'Get away from me, I won't let you infect me!' he twisted and thrashed and screamed whenever he jarred his arm. The pain took the fight out of him and he lay still, panting.

'Well that's interesting.' Luther stepped back, 'He's completely, fucking nuts.' Chris took Luther's spot beside the man and held his shoulder to keep him from turning away.

'Why were you trying to kill Claire?' when he didn't answer Chris reached down and rested his hand lightly on the broken wrist, 'Why were you trying to kill my sister?' he must have applied the slightest bit of pressure because the man's face paled and his mouth opened in a silent groan.

'I know what you people are. But you won't infect me.' He leaned his head back and closed his eyes; continuing to mutter under his breath. Chris looked over his shoulder at the others with a confused look on his face.

'Well, I think its safe to say that, either, there has been some big misunderstanding or this guy really is crazy.' He turned back, 'What's your name?'

'You will not infect me!' this time the man's struggles succeeded in loosening Chris' grip. With surprising speed the man rolled to his feet and made a break for the door. Before anyone else could move Alice took one step forward and slammed her fist into his face. He dropped to the ground and didn't move.

'Okay then, now that that's all taken care of . . .' Claire said whilst rolling her eyes.

'We'll put him in one of the shipping containers and set a guard to watch him. I don't think we'll be getting much information from him anytime soon; he is way passed fanatical.' Alice rubbed her knuckles absently as she spoke, 'But only put people we can trust on him. We don't want to start unnecessary panic.' She turned to Luther, 'Can you help me put a bed and stuff in one of the containers? You other guys can get the guard and whatever you think he might need.' She smiled at Chris, 'You have a special insight on that don't you.'

'Ugh, don't remind me.' He looked back at the man, 'We'll take him down below levels first.' He and Claire both grabbed and arm and made their way out the door. The other two only watched for a moment before leaving for their own tasks.

'We'll punch some holes in it and whatnot, but for now, I think we have our first usable prison on board.' Chris didn't sound happy with the situation but they were all resigned to it. They weren't naive but they'd hoped that since humans were an endangered species maybe they wouldn't have such problems as murder. Apparently not everyone thought in such chivalrous terms. Alice turned to examine the guard Chris had chosen. He was a big, morose looking man; Alice liked him instantly. She nodded at him and he inclined his head in return, then she left with the rest of the group; leaving him to his lonely duty. She had changed into a long sleeved shirt whilst they'd collected the rudimentary items for a prison. Her arm had stopped bleeding but she hadn't had time to wrap it; so she kept it covered to avoid unnecessary worry.

When they reached open air they could see the glow of sunrise on the horizon. Everyone except Alice had been up for almost twenty-four hours and it showed.

'I'll take watch, you guys get some sleep.' They mumbled their thanks and left quickly in case she changed her mind. Claire was the only one who stayed.

'I'm not really that tired,' she lied, 'I'll keep you company.' She didn't give Alice a chance to answer, merely walked passed her to the control room. Alice had been planning on using the solitude to fix her arm, but now she had no choice.

'Claire,' she began, 'don't be mad, but I did get a scratch from the fight. So I'm going to patch it up now.' Claire frowned at her.

'Let me see.' She reached forward but Alice backed away.

'It's really not that bad. I'll just put a bandage around it.' she unerringly opened a cupboard without taking her eyes off the redhead and pulled out a first aid kit.

'Alice.' Claire warned, 'Show me.' The brunette relented and rolled up her sleeve. The blood made it look worse than it was and Alice regretted not washing it off. She watched Claire's face carefully; gauging her reaction. Her face was completely blank at first, then she took two deep breathes and relaxed.

'You are impossible.' She took the first aid kit from the brunette and rummaged through it, coming up with disinfectant wipes and a bandage.

'So you're not angry?' Alice asked warily.

'I am, but I'll get over it. It isn't like you're dead or anything.' She brusquely cleaned the wound and wrapped the crepe around it; ignoring any flinching from her patient.

**Thanks for reading, until next time.**

**-B**


	8. Chapter 8

_Disclaimer: I don't own RE_

_It's getting late, I'm trying to finish a major work due in tommorrow and I've already ingested vast quantities of Redbull. So now, in true unmemorable fashion, I am procrastinating. Good news though, you guys are benifitting, so yay!  
>Also, a little, slightly weird, side note, I have now dubbed those, who have stuck by me with reviews, my ghosts :) If you are confused, re-read author notes in earlier chapters. Blame the dangerous levels of caffine for the removal of my filter . . . and the rambling. Sorry, I'll stop now and let you get on with the reading and reviewing (hint hint). Wow, little bit of alliteration there, what with all the r's. <em>

Alice sat on the floor, leaning against the wall with her legs stretched out in front of her. From her position she could see the controls and wouldn't be noticed straight away if someone happened to walk into the room. She was watching Claire as she paced back and forth across the room. Tiredness had slowed her steps though so she was mostly shuffling instead of the brisk pace she usually maintained when she was thinking.

She eventually came down to sit with Alice; lifting Alice's uninjured arm so that it was around her shoulders.

'Can I tell you something?' Claire asked. Alice just looked at her with her eyebrows raised, 'Yeah, sorry.' She wriggled closer into Alice's side, 'Sometimes I think about leaving. Just packing up my things and jumping ship.' Her hand slide under Alice's shirt as if she was trying to burrow her way in, 'Does that make me a bad person?' It relieved Claire when Alice didn't answer straight away; it meant she was really thinking about it.

'I think it's not right for one person to have to shoulder so much responsibility. You've taken such good care of these people. You've kept them safe, you're guiding them to a home and you have to put up with all the craziness that can happen. You're definitely stronger than me at this stuff.' Claire didn't say anything for a while, then,

'Would you come with me? If I ever left.' Alice chuckled.

'You know the answer to that.' Claire reached up and kissed her softly.

'I love you Alice, you know that right?'

'Yeah, I know that.' Claire wrapped herself around Alice's body as much as she could and resting her head on the brunette's shoulder she began to drift off to sleep, 'I love you too.' Alice whispered.

It was an hour after Alice's shift was supposed to end when Chris stumbled in.

'Sorry, we forgot to actually set someone. . .' He trailed off when he saw Claire curled up around Alice, asleep. Claire still had her hands buried beneath Alice's shirt and one of her legs was curled around Alice's as well.

Neither of them spoke. Most of Claire and Alice's friends knew there was something more between them but they'd never openly acknowledged it. This was the first time that Chris had ever seen them in anything more than platonic.

'It's alright. She needed the sleep.' Alice began carefully, 'Are you taking the watch then?' he nodded in reply. Alice turned to the sleeping figure beside her. She shook her gently but Claire still woke with a start.

'What's wrong?' She sat up quickly, 'Are you okay?' Alice smiled.

'Everything's fine, we're going to bed. Come on.' Alice stood up then reached down to pull Claire to her feet, 'Have fun Chris.' She touched two fingers to her head in salute as they left; when he smiled in return she knew he was over the shock of seeing them together.

'Did we scare my big, bad brother?' Claire asked, grinning.

'No, I think it was just shock.' Alice barely smiled. She had smiled more in the passed few days than usual and her reserves were drying up.

'You haven't slept in a while. Will you stay with me?' Alice didn't even consider declining. This was usually the time she went to bed anyway, and she couldn't refuse Claire anything. She wasn't sure she was going to let Claire sleep though. She had been afraid when she knew where the potential murderer had been going. She had realised something then; she never wanted to be parted from Claire. She would stick with her no matter what, and in the midst of death she was in life.

She scanned the corridors, but the hour was still just early enough for no one to be completely active; they'd most likely be in the cafeteria.

Alice smirked at the reaction she was about to cause, then she turned and pushed Claire up against the wall. Before Claire could speak Alice crashed their lips together, dragging at the redheads hips so they were flush with her own. When she felt greedy hands twist their way into her hair she knew Claire was passed the stage of protest. Alice pulled back for a second, giving her time to rip the shirt from Claire's shoulder. She nipped at the pale skin there whilst her arm wound around the redheads back, drawing her even closer. She felt the vibrations of Claire's moan in her chest; the sound brought the blood boiling to Alice's skin. She reached down with her other hand and squeezed her lover's ass; grinding against her in at the same time. Claire's breathing came faster, until she was almost panting. The heat was too much for Alice; she fumbled at the redheads buttons and unzipped her jeans. When she had them open she pushed her hand in. The action caused Claire to uncontrollably arch into the pressure and her hands dropped to grip at Alice's waist. Before Alice could completely find her way to the apex of Claire's legs, the redhead whimpered her name.

'We can't,' a moan stopped her words for a moment, 'do this . . . here.' She dropped her head into Alice's neck, unwilling to stop what Alice was doing but knowing that someone was bound to come across them sooner or later. Alice had made it to the place where the heat was the most intense and it was having a very detrimental affect on Claire's speech, 'Alice.' She gasped. Alice's reply was almost a growl. She pulled back from the redhead but left her hand where it was.

'Are you sure you want to have to stop this,' she pushed with the hand still inside Claire's jeans to emphasise her point; the redhead's eyes closed and she bit her lip, 'walk all the way to our cabin with our clothes buttoned up then have to restart all over again?' Alice murmured in a teasing tone. The desire in her voice made it nearly impossible for Claire to respond; she seriously considered letting Alice have her in the hall, but the thought of someone coming across them wasn't far from her mind and she didn't want that embarrassment. This wasn't three o'clock in the morning. The chance of someone finding them was exponentially higher, know matter what Alice thought. So she nodded her head reluctantly and dragged Alice's hand out of her pants.

'Yes, I do want to walk all the way back to our cabin with our clothes on . . . but maybe we can hurry.' Alice grinned at her then took her hand and practically dragged her down the corridors.

As soon as they were safely inside their room Alice returned to her previous attentions; with no less desperation. Claire lost her shirt in seconds and her pants not long after. Alice pushed her back onto the bed; she then divested herself of her own clothes. She paused a second to drink in the sight before her. Claire's eyes were dark with lust and she smirked up at Alice. She slowly reached down, her hand sliding along her abdomen, and hooked a thumb in the band of her underwear. Alice watched the movement with greedy eyes. Before Claire pulled them off though she sat up slightly and unclipped her bra. Alice's eyes darted up as the fabric loosened. The only thing that could drag her gaze from the sight of the naked flesh was the return of Claire's hand to her underwear. She slipped them slowly down her legs then ran her hand up her own thigh. Alice tracked that wandering hand as if her life depended on it. Before Claire even made it all the way, Alice snapped. She rushed forward and pushed Claire's body back with her own. Claire wrapped her legs around the brunette's waist, drawing her closer, and running her hands up the smooth skin of Alice's back. Alice's hand was already reaching down between them and Claire's eyes closed involuntarily as Alice touched her. Claire gripped Alice's shoulders as she set the rhythm. Alice wasn't satisfied with drawing it out though and she quickly had Claire shaking and gasping. Claire clung to Alice as she collapsed and the feel of her naked body made the sensation so much more intense.

It took a few minutes before Claire was able to open her eyes again. Alice was leaning over her; watching her. When Claire looked at her she smirked.

'You are so going to pay for that.' And she flipped them both so she was on top.

They both lay exhausted in the bed. When they had both got their breathing under control Alice turned on her side and wrapped an arm around Claire's waist.

'What was that all about?' Claire wasn't complaining but it had been even more unexpected than Alice's usual demands.

'Nothing.' She shrugged. Claire was silent but Alice had no delusions that she'd dropped the subject.

'Alice.' It was a warning.

'I was just scared for you, that's all; I don't like feeling like that.' She said it lightly; she hated talking about feelings.

'Right, you were scared for me so you jumped me in the middle of the hallway.' She paused, 'I can see how that makes sense.' Alice wasn't sure if she was been sarcastic or not so she kept silent, 'I'm not going to leave you Alice, I promise. You're the one I kind of like having around the most you know?' She was embarrassed at the admission but she meant it all the same.

'I know this is going to sound creepy and dependent and all that,' Alice began, 'But I won't let you out of my sight.'

'Yeah, you're right. That did sound creepy and ultra dependent.' But Claire turned in Alice's arms and held her close, 'You do realise,' she mumbled into Alice's hair, 'You never really let me out of your sight anyway. Don't think I don't know when you're watching me. I can feel it at night when I go walkabout; you're always there.' She felt the vibrations of Alice's chuckle.

'I don't mean to follow you; I just find you and decide watching you is better than walking about in the cold.' Alice's voice was getting quieter and Claire knew she wasn't far off sleep.

'Why do you do that?' Claire asked.

'Hmm?' Alice murmured.

'Why do you walk out there all by yourself in the middle of the night? Why don't you just stay here with me?' Alice's reply was a long time in coming, but, just as Claire decided she'd fallen asleep, she answered.

'I need to make sure everything's safe. The only time I can do that without having to see people, is at night. You cannot believe how hard it is to drag myself away from you though.' But, as if in contradiction, Alice removed her arms from around Claire and stood up. Claire looked up at her questionably but she merely moved to drape a shirt over the porthole to stop the early morning sun from coming through. She then returned to the bed, crawling in beside Claire and holding her once more, 'Now no more questions, I need sleep.'

**So now, to satisfy my need for closure, I bid you goodnight (or goodmorning depending on where you are reading from) :)**

**-B**


	9. Chapter 9

_Disclaimer: I don't own RE_

_Enjoy guys._

K-mart had stayed up long after the last of the passengers had finally made their way to bed. She felt as though she hadn't slept for a week but every time she thought she was tired enough to sleep her body would play tricks with her and she'd feel more awake then ever. So she sat out on deck, bundled in a jacket to keep the wind off. She didn't often sit by herself; if there was one thing she hated it was to be alone. But sometimes it felt good to listen to the thoughts that ran through her head without the constant interruption of someone else wanting her opinion on whatever subject they could think of: When would they be setting ashore? Would they be able to choose their own house? What would they do for supplies? All these questions were the same ones Claire and the others were wondering too. So what chance did she have of solving the problems?

She shook these thoughts away and stood up. There was no point in thinking negatively. Solutions would be found, decisions made. That's the way things worked. That's the way things would have to work if they wanted to survive.

As she rounded the corner she found a pleasant surprise waiting for her at the railing.

'Hello K-mart.' He turned and smiled in her direction. He still couldn't make eye contact with her.

'Hello.' She would enjoy his company. He didn't demand conversation and when they did talk he was smart and considerate.

'Did you hear about what happened last night?' She wasn't looking at him when he asked the question so she missed the small smirk that accompanied the enquiry.

As soon as Luther relieved Chris from watch he wandered down to their makeshift prison. He called out to Brian before coming too close. The guard had been told to ward off any curious people who may have heard any rumours about the incident that occurred last night.

'How's he been?' Chris peered through the small cut out they'd made so they could keep an eye on the man inside.

'Not quiet. He keeps yammering on about infection and Umbrella agents who have managed to sneak in and fool us all.' Brian shifted his shoulders, 'I wouldn't mind going in there and giving him a whack if I thought it would shut him up.' Chris looked back and grinned at him, 'The doctor came down earlier and fixed his arm up.' He could see the plaster that encased the arm.

'We can get someone else down here to give you a break soon.' Chris turned back from the hole.

'I don't mind it down here. It would be better if that idiot in there would keep his mouth shut, but I can handle it.' They both turned as a shout came form the container.

'I can hear you whispering out there! My friends will get me. They'll release me from this prison and we will rise up and free the people from your experiments!' Chris looked at Brian who shrugged his shoulders.

'That's a new one.' Chris returned to the cut out.

'What friends would that be?' He wasn't really expecting an answer and he wasn't disappointed. The man turned his back on him and huddled in the corner, rocking and muttering to himself. Chris turned back to the guard, 'I'll come back with a replacement; you need to rest sometime.' Brian just nodded. With a parting salute Chris left the dark level.

Alice woke to the sound of knocking. She turned to the door as if she would be able to see however was there. The knocking continued softly. Claire was still asleep; she'd escaped Alice's embrace at some stage and now lay spread out with one arm dangling over the edge of the narrow bed.

'Claire.' It sounded like K-mart's voice from the other side of the door, 'Claire, are you awake? Chris wants to see you.' Claire didn't stir at the voice so Alice carefully eased herself out of the bed and tiptoed to the door. She opened the door just enough to see K-mart standing outside. She rubbed a hand across her eyes then pushed the same hand through her hair; brushing it out.

'What's up K?' Her voice was rougher than usual after the sleep.

'Oh, hey Alice. Is Claire up?' If she was startled to see Alice she hid it quickly.

'No, she's still sleeping. Is it important?' She stifled a yawn.

'I don't know, Chris just wants to speak with her. I think it sounded urgent.' Alice was nodding before she finished.

'Righto, just give her a minute okay?'

'Sure, he'll be in the control room.' She started backing away.

'Thanks K.' She turned and surveyed the small room. With land barely a day away she was beginning to feel the claustrophobia more keenly than ever.

Claire had moved into the warm spot Alice had left in the bed. Alice couldn't help smiling at her.

'Stop staring at me, it's creepy.' Claire didn't open her eyes which made Alice smile wider.

'Sorry.' She moved to the bed and lay on top of the sheets facing the redhead, 'At least I don't have to risk my life by waking you up now. Did you hear? Chris wants you in the control room.'

'Ew Alice, that's gross, he's my brother.' Alice blinked in confusion until she realised the joke, than she laughed louder than she'd laughed in what felt like a long time. Claire laughed with her until they were both nearly in tears.

'That's not even funny.' Alice managed to gasp out.

'It was a dirty joke; they're always funny.' Alice stopped laughing and rolled so she was hovering over Claire.

'I'll show you dirty.' Then she kissed the redhead passionately. They broke apart and laughed again.

'None of that now; I've got to see my brother remember?' Claire pushed the brunette away than sat up and searched for her clothes. Alice, still smiling, handed her a shirt.

'Should I come?' Claire had found a pair of pants and had been trying to pull them on backwards.

'Only if you want to.' She finally pulled them on the right way round and began pulling on her boots.

'I'm coming then.' Alice dressed and even beat Claire to the door.

'Careful, we might run into someone. You might even have to talk to them.' Claire put an expression of fake horror on her face. Alice shoved her playfully.

'Oh, don't worry I'll have disappeared long before I have to speak to actual people.' She laughed softly at the expression of real horror that came from her words.

'What the hell does that make me?'

'Believe me, you'd rather not classify as people in my book; I have no faith in people.' She could feel the playful mood dissipating as she spoke and she was sorry to see it go.

'That's a morbid view to have.' Claire looked at her closely.

'I have faith in you. Can't that be enough?' Alice wasn't sure if she wanted her question answered, but Claire was gentle.

'Yes, I supposed it can be.' She slipped her hand into Alice's and squeezed gently. Alice smiled at her gratefully.

**Sappy, I know :/ Hope you liked it :)**

**-B**


	10. Chapter 10

_I know, I know. I'm extraordinarily late in my update (haha, rhyme) but here it is, so read and review and I will give my apathy an extremely serious talking to._

_Enjoy._

Chris was pacing when they reached the control room. He reminded Alice of the younger Redfield sibling so much that she almost laughed.

'Where have you been? K-mart said you were coming like ten minutes ago.' He didn't look that angry though so Claire didn't bother with an explanation.

'What's got you so worked up you need to drag me out of bed after a very inadequate sleep?' she demanded.

'The man that had a go at you yesterday; he says he's got friends.' Chris stopped pacing, 'This doesn't mean I believe him, he's fucking crazy after all, but still.'

'Chris, you know that if he doesn't tell us anything there isn't really anything we can do.' Claire rubbed her face tiredly. She had hoped the whole ordeal would be over now; she wasn't in the mood for having to be constantly watching her back.

'I can make him talk.' Claire didn't realise the implications straight away, but when she did she looked at him in shock; his face was completely calm.

'No Chris, I won't tolerate that. Don't you know how precious a human life is? What you're suggesting would completely destroy whatever integrity we're trying to uphold here.' Her words didn't seem to be making a difference; his face was still calm.

'You know how much I value life Claire; why else do you think I would be considering this. I'm trying to protect you.' Claire looked to Alice for support but she was no longer beside her. She spun quickly; she wasn't in the room, 'Why didn't you tell me she was gone?' Claire rounded on him. Her anger was showing now; she hadn't meant to snap.

'She can do what needs to be done.' Now Claire definitely meant to snap. How could her own brother and Alice, the women she loved, make their own plans right in front of her. But she knew she couldn't waste time screaming at and, maybe, possibly killing her brother; she had to stop Alice.

She sprinted from the room and didn't stop running until she had reached the storage level. She dismissed the bruises she could feel from running into tight corners and, completely ignoring Brian, she stopped at the open door. What she saw confused her at first. Alice was sitting calmly on the narrow bunk that had been drilled into the floor, the man was curled up in one corner looking pale but completely fine; excepting the broken wrist. She strode up to him anyway and roughly brushed him down; looking for injuries. When she found none, she finally turned to the silent women.

'What did you do?' She was still wary, even though he seemed unhurt.

'I got information.' Alice answered deliberately.

'How?' Claire asked bluntly.

'I asked him.' She still didn't move, just sat there; yet she still made Claire feel slightly inadequate.

'And he just gave you the answers?' the sarcasm was plain in her tone.

'Yes.' Alice was showing the side that had provided her with sanity during her years alone; a solid wall of steel that showed nothing beneath. She could hide behind this façade for however long she needed. And she would do it to protect Claire. But Claire was looking at her in complete exasperation so she decided to give her a break, 'We have an understanding.' Alice shrugged, 'Let's leave it at that.' She stood up and made her way out of the container, nodding to Brian as she left. Claire saw the movement and lashed out again.

'You, Brian. Why did you let her in here?'

'Well ma'am. As you may know, one is powerless to stop Alice when she's set her mind on an idea.' His face was bland so she couldn't tell if he was making fun of her or not. She stared at him for a moment longer, decided it was a lost cause, and so left without another word.

She caught up to Alice and fell into step beside her.

'I didn't hurt him; at least not permanently. He'll be back to his old crazy self in a matter of hours, or maybe days.' Claire still didn't speak. Alice didn't push her; that wasn't her way. If someone didn't want to talk then that was fine.

They had just reached the control room when Claire tugged Alice to a stop.

'I'm not angry Alice, if you say you didn't hurt him, then I believe you, but you can't go around all gung ho like that. I can protect myself, you know that. So if someone wants to kill me, that's my problem to deal with.' She turned as if the conversation was over, but Alice wasn't going to let that stand.

'Claire, I don't have a lot of responsibilities on this ship, but the main one is protecting you. I won't force you to stay cooped up inside, but I will protect you when someone makes a threat on your life. And that's fact Claire; there's no way around it.' Alice was looking at her with deadly seriousness, 'That came as part of the package when you agreed to be with me.' Claire looked glum.

'I didn't know an overprotective crazy chick came with the package.' She mumbled.

'Well it does, and if you have a problem with that, I can't do anything about it.' Alice sighed.

'No, I can deal with it, I overreacted. If someone was trying to kill you, I'd probably be the same.' She bit her lip for a second then added, 'Alice I need you, more than I think you realise.' Alice finally smiled.

'No, I think I do realise. If you need me half as much as I need you then that'd be a lot.' Now they were both smiling. Claire moved closer until she was only centimetres from the brunette.

'I don't know,' she whispered, 'I need you pretty bad right now.' She leaned forward and pressed her lips to Alice's. They didn't let it get too heated though. When Alice pulled away she kept the proximity.

'No matter how much I would love to continue this, I have to go save your life, remember.' Claire sighed.

'If you really must.'

When they entered Alice gave Chris one name.

'Zac Ovens.' He was already holding the passenger log and he typed the name in. One picture came up and they all gathered around to see it. The photo wasn't anything special; just an average man with light brown hair and dark blue eyes, but Alice burned it into her memory. Chris straightened.

'I'll call up Luther then we go and ask people if they've seen this man; discreetly of course, we don't want to spook him.' He turned and reached for the radio he'd left on the console. After the attack on Claire they'd all tightened personal security. They all carried a radio and at least one gun; in most case more than one gun.

Claire felt Alice shift beside her; she didn't seem to be able to stand still.

'Hey, calm down, we'll get him.' Claire placed her hand on Alice's arm and was surprised to find it shaking.

'I'm sick of this Claire, I want off this ship.' She pushed her hand through her hair, making it stand up in messy peaks.

'We're only here for one more day. We're going to start heading in tomorrow morning.' She slid her hand down Alice's arm until she was gripping her hand, 'Just think of wide open spaces with a bit of forest and a clean running stream. Our own home, with K-mart probably, if that's okay, and an actual bed, a big one.' She got a small grin from Alice.

'I like the sound of that.' Chris turned back to them then.

'Luther's on his way, why don't you guys go now and start asking around. It would probably be faster if you split up.' He added glancing down at their joined hands. Alice pulled her hand free gently.

'Claire's in the most danger out of all of us. There must be a reason why he went after her first; I don't want her out there alone.'

'I know Alice, but this is gonna be a mammoth task with just the four of us. We need to find him, and fast.' Alice was nodding, conceding the point.

'But is it worth it to get the job done faster by jeopardising her safety.'

'Um, I'm right here guys.' Claire added. Chris shushed her absently.

'I don't like it any more than you do Alice, but the faster we find this guy, the safer she'll be.' Alice was already talking before he'd barely finished.

'What happens if he finds her before we find him? Do you really want to leave her unprotected whilst he may be stalking her?'

'I have a gun.' Claire spoke up. This time they both glared at her, so she decided to stay quiet and see who would win. It looked like Alice might have the upper hand because Chris seemed to be thinking it over.

'Fine,' he said, 'go together, but Alice,' he called as they both turned to leave, 'if anything happens to her . . .' Alice nodded.

'I understand.' Then she hustled Claire out and shut the door behind them.

'What was that, like bro talk or something?' Alice smiled grimly at her query.

'It means that, if I let you get hurt, he has permission to beat the shit out of me.' Claire let that sink in, then,

'Why do you two always make me feel like I'm a glass figurine that needs to be handled with care?' she asked in exasperation.

'Because we both love you, and with that love we both know we have responsibilities.' She smiled at her, truly this time, 'It's more a fail safe; if you get hurt we can blame each other, no matter whose fault it was.' Claire shook her head in disbelief.

'You guys are messed up.' Alice chuckled.

'I'm not going to argue that.' They then came out onto the deck and the questioning began.

**Hope you liked it and, as always, sorry for any mistakes :) Peace Out.**

**-B**


	11. Chapter 11

_Okay, **Red Hope **thank you so much for your review, kinda gave me a bit of confidence in my story (and also I'm reading your **Phoenix** story, which I believe is real top notch :) if I haven't reviewed on it sorry, I am really bad a reviews and feel like I make a total twat of myself whenever I do them so yeah it's really awesome, and anyone reading this who hasn't read it, well you're missing out)_

_Yes, anyway, enough plugging, please enjoy. :)_

* * *

><p><em>He heard the whispers. He saw the members of the inner circle asking their questions, thinking they were been so subtle. He could have used this though. He could have waited until she was alone. He could have finished the job that that idiot Frank was supposed to do. But that brunette never left her side. So many times he could have taken the leader that mattered, but the brunette was always there, always watching. If he was going to get a chance at Claire he would have to take out her little guard dog first. <em>

It had been a long afternoon. They had questioned everyone they believed to be knowledgeable but also discreet in their dealings. And still they hadn't found him. There had been a moment when someone told them of a man they often saw at the railings that maybe matched their description, but when they'd gone to check there had been no one there.

Now Alice was standing at the bow, enjoying the solitude and cool night breeze. She had secretly met with Chris and they'd made an agreement to take turns keeping an eye on Claire. They were up in the control room now; Claire on watch, Chris on the pretence of keeping her company.

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. If she concentrated she swore she could smell land.

She heard the sound of footsteps coming near and frowned. She had hoped her little hiding place would remain undiscovered, but it seemed nothing could stay private on the ship. The footsteps didn't sound familiar, but she was tired and didn't really want to take notice. When the footsteps came faster though she turned in suspicion. Someone ran into her at full tilt.

Maybe they hadn't expected her to turn so soon, or maybe she was just lucky, whatever was supposed to happen she didn't want to guess at, what did happen was that she was only hit a glancing blow. She was spun around and ended by clutching at the rail; it shook beneath her hands and she remembered how rusted it really was. She backed away as fast as possible but the person who had hit her came again. He grabbed at her shoulders and tried to push her back towards the rail. But she was ready this time. She ducked under his arm and slammed a punch into his kidneys. The blow stunned him and he staggered away from her. She didn't need to see him to know who he was.

'Zac Ovens.' She stood back from him, waiting till he could breathe properly.

'And you are the secretive Alice, who no one seems to know anything about.' He laughed breathlessly. Alice frowned at him; he wasn't exactly sounding sane.

'So, I'm guessing you're the one behind the attack on Claire. And if the ramblings of that guy in the container are anything to go by, you weren't going to stop with her.' He laughed again.

'No I wasn't, but as it turns out, I'm not even going to start with her anymore.' With that he lunged at her.

With the edge of the ship so dangerously close, Alice was been careful not to try anything that could end with them both overboard. She managed to take a step to the side that allowed her to evade the majority of Zac's charge, but he stuck his elbow out just as he moved passed her and clipped her across the cheek. The hit had her dazed, but she forced herself to focus. She was definitely not the one going to die today.

In the control room Claire was laughing at Chris's impersonation of Luther when he'd kept him locked up within the prison.

'And every morning he'd come down and tell me "You wanna get out? Well only The Man can unlock that door, and down here I'm The Man." Then he'd turn around and swagger off like he was Clint Eastwood or some shit.' Claire was almost in hysterics and Chris was having trouble getting the story out through his laughter, 'But can you blame him really? He had to keep everyone together in there. It was probably his daily pep talk, coming down and taunting the guy in the cage, made him feel tough.'

Claire slapped at him, 'Don't defend him, he's an idiot.'

Chris contained his chuckles, 'Yeah, but that idiot has got leadership skills and his good for the morale around here.' Claire rolled her eyes and waved off the excuses.

The moment of silence was interrupted by the changing of the shift. A woman, Claire recognised as one of the survivors found on the ship, walked in.

'Hey guys.' She greeted.

'Hi Rachel,' Claire stood up and stretched her stiff limbs, 'Guess I'll go see how Alice is doing.' Chris jumped up after her.

'I'll come too.' He practically glued himself to her side as they excited the room. Claire had a suspicion that he was on orders from Alice to look out for her, so she didn't question him.

Since the night was quickly settling around them Claire believed Alice was probably on one of her rounds of the ship. There were still a number of people drifting through the hallways, so Claire decided to begin her search outside. She wasn't sure where Alice would be so she wandered aimlessly in the direction of the bow; Chris following her the whole time.

'Do you have any idea where she is?' Claire turned to look at her brother, he was rubbing at his arms, trying to ward off the cold.

'You can always go back inside . . .'

'Shh.' Chris cut her off, 'Do you hear that?' he had his head cocked to one side listening intently. Claire copied his actions and was able to make out the sounds of a conversation. She couldn't hear the words clearly but the tone was unmistakable. She sprinted in the direction of the bow. Chris was right beside her.

'You wouldn't believe how hard it is to get good help these days.' Zac was speaking calmly as they circled each other, 'I've had to rely on idiots and mad men to carry out my plans, and you saw how well that worked out.' Alice was trying to get him positioned in front of the railing where she would have the advantage, so she tried to distract him by humouring his tirade.

'Yeah, the man who attacked last night was a real charmer. What did you expect to happen if he'd succeeded though? We would have caught him and put an end to this either way.' If she could only get him to move another few feet.

'He was told to accept all responsibility for the murder. That way I could continue my work without the annoyance of your inane questions. But he just couldn't keep his damned mouth shut I guess.' He had stopped moving now, not quite in the position Alice would have hoped for, but close enough, 'That is how you found me right? Frank told you. Funny, I would have thought his delusions would have been strong enough to leave me out of the picture.' It was Alice's turn to smirk.

'I can be very persuasive when I want to be.' She crouched ever so slightly, readying herself for the leap.

'Ah, I thought it might have been you who pulled my name from him. It seems I've underestimated you quite a bit.' She was just about to make her move when the sound of running footsteps intruded on their private stand off. They both froze.

'Alice?' Claire and Chris both came sprinting around the raised bunker then stopped when they spotted the scene in front of them. Alice had cornered Zac against the railing and hadn't taken her eyes off him at their approach. Zac, on the other hand, was smiling pleasantly.

'And the cavalry arrives.' He chuckled and raised his hands, 'Okay, I surrender. I'll go quietly.' He took a step forward, but stopped when Alice moved to intercept his path. He looked at the siblings behind Alice with his eyebrows raised.

'Care to call off your dog?' Neither of the Redfield's moved though. Zac frowned and for the first time Alice could see fear on his face, 'You know you have to let me go, it would be going against your own moral code to kill me.' He reasoned, but it still had no effect. Alice eased a revolver from its holster. Before he could draw the air into his lungs to scream, her arm shot up and a single gunshot rang out.

All three waited as the splash sounded below. They stood for many more minutes, looking at the hole in the railing. Finally Alice turned to face the siblings. Chris was the first one to speak.

'Thank you.' She frowned at his words, 'For doing it, so we wouldn't have to.' He wrapped his arm around Claire's shoulders.

'This should never have happened. Why can't we just live? Why do we have to keep protecting ourselves from other humans? It's not right.' Alice shook her head and both Claire and Chris could hear the anger in her voice, but only Claire knew where it was directed.

'Come on Alice.' She held her hand out to the brunette, 'We have to move on.'

**There might not be another update for a while because I am going to get incredibly busy very soon, but I'll see what I can do.  
>Hope you liked it.<strong>

**-B**


End file.
